Sega Announces Mega Drive Mini 2 — and Why There’s No Saturn Mini

Sega of Japan announced today the Mega Drive Mini 2, the latest in their line of plug-and-play devices. It’s set to come with more than 50 classic games from both the Mega Drive (aka Genesis) and, notably, the Mega CD (aka Sega CD) libraries when it launches in Japan this October.

While that’s not the news Saturn fans might have hoped for, the hardware’s producer Yosuke Okunari offered an explanation for why Sega’s not following up 2019’s Mega Drive Mini with a Saturn Mini.

Speaking to Famitsu magazine, Okunari said the chipsets needed to sufficiently emulate Saturn games are too expensive amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

GSK translated the interview on Twitter:

…so, even if they'd forged ahead with a Saturn Mini anyway, it might've been extremely expensive—he jokes that he might like to release a mini that costs as much as an authentic modern console

— GSK | https://cohost.org/gosokkyu (@gosokkyu) June 3, 2022

He also inferred that M2, the company handling the Mega Drive Mini 2’s emulation, simply hasn’t figured out the ins and outs of the Saturn’s many processors:

…so, it's confirmed that 20 of the 50+ games are MCD games—any more than that and they'd be at it for the rest of time

unlike, say, the PC Engine CD which is basically just a CD drive and not much else, the MCD has a second CPU & other extra hardware that have to be emulated

— GSK | https://cohost.org/gosokkyu (@gosokkyu) June 3, 2022

incidentally, they didn't include any 32X games for similar reasons—the 32X's dual processors put it off the table; those processors are in the Saturn, so if they could've pulled off 32X, maybe a Saturn Mini could've been possible

(he's being glib, Saturn has way more junk)

— GSK | https://cohost.org/gosokkyu (@gosokkyu) June 3, 2022

His comments still give a glimmer of hope for a Saturn Mini in the future — clearly, Sega has thought about it and knows that people are interested in it.

The Mega Drive Mini 2 was announced during a livestream this morning, revealing that it will look like the redesigned Mega Drive that released in 1993, contrasting the original Mega Drive Mini that resembled the 1989 launch unit.

10月27日(木)発売の『メガドライブミニ２』
収録タイトル紹介映像第1弾を公開❗

第1段では、当時は発売されなかった「ボーナスタイトル」も含めた11タイトルを紹介いたします。https://t.co/LQcPC1Nj8w

次回の収録タイトルは6月24日(金)に発表予定です！https://t.co/hdYxOoiweJ#メガドラミニ pic.twitter.com/Usfmq94cho

— セガ公式アカウント🦔 (@SEGA_OFFICIAL) June 3, 2022

They announced the system’s first 11 games, which are:

• Bonanza Bros.
• Fantasy Zone
• Magical Taruruto-kun
• Mansion of Hidden Souls
• Popful Mail
• Shining Force CD
• Shining in the Darkness
• Silpheed
• Sonic CD
• Thunder Force IV
• Virtua Racing

The remaining 40-plus games will be announced in several more presentations planned for the next few months leading up to the Mini’s Oct. 27 launch.

This will be the first time Sega has re-released practically any Mega CD, aka Sega CD, games since their original releases in the ’90s. Even Sonic CD’s port on PCs and the upcoming Sonic Origins collection has changes and additions that go beyond the original game, while Sega looks to faithfully emulate it on the Mini.

The inclusion of Virtua Racing is also notable — it was the only Mega Drive game that used an extra processor inside the cartridge, the SVP chip, which needed to be analyzed and emulated by M2 to add it to the Mini’s lineup.

While a Western release has not been officially announced, Okunari told Famitsu that it will be sold overseas, albeit in more limited quantities than the first Genesis Mini.